US President George W. Bush rewarded Thailand yesterday for supporting the war on terror and told other nations gathering for a Pacific Rim summit they too had to bind together to end the threat. Bush also said the United States would not sign a non-aggression pact with North Korea to end its nuclear weapons programme but, for the first time, held out the possibility of giving Pyongyang some sort of security guarantee.

His comments set the tone for the two-day summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum beginning in the Thai capital today with US concerns on terror and nuclear proliferation likely to dominate the agenda. Some Asian nations say they would prefer to concentrate on promoting trade, the original goal of APEC when the 21-member group was formed in 1989, especially after the collapse of world trade talks in Cancun, Mexico, last month.

Washington has agreed to discuss trade but says growth and prosperity are not possible without ensuring security, a line it has pursued since the September 11, 2001, attacks. ?This is still a dangerous world,? Bush told reporters, using the broadcast of a new audio tape purportedly recorded by militant leader Osama bin Laden to bolster his case.

In the tapes aired by Qatar-based Arabic television station Al Jazeera on Saturday, the speaker vowed more suicide attacks inside and outside the United States and warned all countries backing Washington on Iraq that they too were targets.?I think that the bin Laden tape should say to everybody the war on terror goes on, that there?s still a danger for free nations and that free nations need to work together more than ever,? Bush said.

China changes script

China however ensured not everything would be dictated by a US script. President Hu Jintao, speaking at a meeting of businessmen ahead of the summit, rebuffed Washington?s call that Beijing revalue its currency saying holding the yuan steady suited China and was a benefit to Asia and the world. But he was conciliatory after a meeting with Bush and said the two nations would discuss economic disputes. ?We stated our readiness to resolve whatever questions that might emerge in our economic exchanges through dialogue,? Hu said, though he did not refer to US demands on the yuan.

Usually teeming Bangkok was quiet and under a shroud of security as Bush held meetings and visited one of the city?s most important Buddhist sites. He took off his shoes and walked hand-in-hand with his wife Laura around the 200-year-old shrine. Police blocked off several roads in the city of 10 million people and prevented a group of about 2,000 anti-globalisation and anti-war protesters from approaching the visiting dignitaries.

Bush promised to launch negotiations with Thailand on a comprehensive free trade agreement, which would be of immense value to the Southeast Asian nation as it seeks to secure markets for its agricultural products. He made it clear it was a reward for helping the United States in the war on terror, most visibly demonstrated by Thailand?s capture of al Qaeda leader Hambali in August.?The United States of America has made its choice. The Kingdom of Thailand has made its choice. We will meet this danger,? he told soldiers of the Royal Thai Army.

APEC members include Japan, Peru, Chile, Australia, New Zealand, tiny Papua New Guinea and a clutch of South-East Asian nations. Several in the group are struggling to contain militancy within their borders, including Indonesia, the world?s most populous Muslim country, Russia and the Philippines. The group also includes nations which clashed bitterly in Cancun, causing the collapse of negotiations deemed crucial to completing the so-called Doha round of WTO talks by the end of 2004.

APEC foreign and trade ministers reached broad consensus on Saturday on the need for fresh efforts to put the derailed talks back on track, although few believed there was more on offer than rhetoric. Still, the summit will offer a chance for the US, China, Russia, Japan and South Korea to discuss the North Korean nuclear issue.

For the first time, Bush left the door open to providing security assurances to persuade North Korea to give up its nuclear ambitions but ruled out a formal non-aggression treaty of the kind the reclusive communist country wants.

Ed Cropley

Steve Holland

food tastes

Philippine president craves smelliest Thai fruit

Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo will take advantage of a Pacific Rim summit in Bangkok to satisfy her craving for Thailand?s stinkiest fruit ? the durian. ?She was raised in a place in Mindanao where they grow durian,? presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye told Reuters referring to the spiky-shelled, pungent fruit that grows not only in Mindanao in the Southern Philippines but in much of South-East Asia. ?In Manila, she likes Philippine durians, but when in Thailand, she prefers the locals,? he said. In May last year, Thailand used the fruit known as the ?skunk of the orchards? to cement relations with Arroyo. Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra threw a special ?durian buffet? for her, offering an array of delicacies that included three types of Thai durian, durian-stuffed moon cakes and durian ice cream. Because of its powerful aroma ? some people say it smells like rotting fruit in a blocked drain ? eating durian is banned from hotels, public places and on buses, trains and planes across South-East Asia.